2/18/10

Dough Burgers

Dough Burgers

Dough burgers are popular in our neck of the woods. Phillips Grocery in Oxford has received national acclaim for their top-secret-recipe dough burger. I ate two while I was staying at the hospital with my dad recently! It is the nearest restaurant! When Larry and I were newlyweds and living in New Albany, we loved going to Latham’s for their yummy version of this delicious sandwich. Several other area cities also offer well-known versions of this unique burger. Tupelo’s Johnny’s Drive-In has the "Johnnieburger," and Corinth even has a festival named in honor of their dough burger, affectionately known as “The Slugburger.” Here in our own dear Pontotoc, we love the "Wonderburger" at Butcher Block!
Dough burgers supposedly originated during the Great Depression. Adding flour was a great way to stretch hamburger meat. While possibly born out of necessity, it has remained a part of the Southern diet due to its delectable taste. I’ve eaten my share of these burgers through the years. The best ones, of course, were the ones my momma made!When I opened the fridge this morning, the pound of hamburger left from the 3-pound value pack of meat I bought for the meatloaf on Tuesday was staring me in the face. I knew I had to cook it, or freeze it. Then, as I opened the pantry for my morning cereal, I noticed a package of hamburger buns on the shelf, which were nearing their use by date. Inspiration struck! I ditched the planned meal and made dough burgers!

Dough Burgers

The key is to handle the meat gently.This is plain and simple good eatin'!

Gently crumble the ground beef into a bowl.
Add the flour and mix gently.
Add three tablespoons milk and mix gently. The mixture should be moist, but not gooey. You can add a bit more flour, if needed.
Form the meat into 4 patties and place on waxed paper. Cover with another piece of waxed paper.
Using a cutting board, press down on the patties gently and flatten them. The finished patties should
be thin and about the diameter of a saucer. They will shrink!
Fry in a bit of oil until brown and crispy, turning only once, if possible. Don't press them with the spatula. I cook mine in an electric skillet, as its size accommodates all 4 patties.
Remove from pan and top with cheese.
Pour grease from skillet, but don’t wipe.
Place buns in skillet, return to stove top and "toast" over medium heat.
Place burgers on buns; add toppings and condiments of choice.

17 comments:

Doughburgers is subject near and dear to my heart. Your prep instructions are excellent. The recipe passed down by my dad is a bit simpler; meat, flour and water, but even this simple version works well for me. Thanks for posting the measurements of the ingredients, as well, and thanks for the "down home" introduction for your followers.

These are the best burgers aren't they! I've been making them for over 30 years and they are always a BIG HIT at my house. When I was carrying both of my children I craved these burgers..esp the ones from Phillips before I learned to make them. Thanks for sharing the Dough Burger with the world!!

When my children were teenagers, I started making dough burgers. I have taken a pound of hamburger meat and made 18 dough burgers. I use only milk, flour, salt and pepper. The more you add, the more burgers. All the kids loved them. I live near Johnnies' in Tupelo, and have never been able to copy their's exactly. Must be a guarded family secret. But I have found the more flour and milk (or water, if you perfer) you put, the taste is better.

my dad is from Pontotoc and he bought me doughburgers as a kid at the grocery store when we were in town. He is a pastor so we have lived all over the state but he made them for me sometimes also. I am looking forward to making them this weekend; now if i can just get the homemade corn dog recipe from my aunt my pontotoc child hood foods will be recreated. I love your site and can't wait to try several of the recipes

I remember dough burgers as a child from my dad. I lived in Pontotoc, MS. My dad had a resturant and his dad had a resturant called Prewitt's Cafe. This burger has been passed on through many generations. There is nothing like a dough burger. People who have never heard of it would think that it is awful. You have to try them.

I had "slugburgers" about a month or so ago while in MS. Thought they sounded strange but gave em a try. They were delicious. I went online to find a recipe & found yours. Thanks for putting it on so I know how to make them myself.

Connie, Thanks for sharing your "Dough Burger" recipe. I'm from Tupelo. My husband loves the burgers from Johnnie's Drive-In. He had me look for a recipe for Dough Burgers & I found yours. I'm going to give it a try.

I've been looking for a recipe for "Lathams" burgers for years now! It's been a family tradition of mine when I went hone to my birthplace of New Albany, Ms to go there! Now I make them at hone for the big city folks! I do miss the atmosphere of the old alley restaurant, reading the signs on the wall and the bottle cokes! Thanks!!!

Connie, been trying to come up with a recipe for a Latham's burger... now I don't have to experiment anymore! My husband is from the New Albany area, his brother lives in Ecru. I stumbled across your blog and love it' I have lived in the south most of my life, but since my mother was from England, I never really knew what southern food was until I married my husband. You have some great, easy homestyle recipes I can't wait to try. Thanks for the time and effort you have put into sharing your faith and food.

My Grandfather(Carrolls Grill) was famous for his Flour burger in Wallace, NC. They were the best I've ever had. Crunchy and thin. I can remember seeing my Grandmother make the mixture in a large pot mixing it with her hand elbow deep. Then scoop out with an ice cream scoop when placing on the griddle. They used lard. Fresh onions . flour , water and hamburger. I wish I had the recipe. But you know, I don't think they had a precise one themselves.

MEAL PLANNING HELPS

The PlanMy number one suggestion for meal planning is to keep it simple! Guard against letting it become a time-consuming chore that you dread. Below is a link for my very simple, no-frills shopping list and menu planner.

I create my daily menu plan at the top, adding ingredients to purchase on the shopping list portion at the bottom. I place the entire form in my coupon binder when I go shopping. When I return home, I clip off the top portion, which contains the menu plan, and post it near the oven. I toss the used shopping list portion. I usually print about 12 of these forms at a time. Print page one first. Flip the stack, and print page two on the back.To help keep planning time simple and quick, we have “nights” for certain types of dishes. We arevery flexible with it, especially adjusting to try new recipes. The "nights" just provides a good jumping off point for our plans! We change the "nights" several time throughout the year to keep our meal plan from becoming too boring and to allow room for more new dishes.

Here’s our basic plan at the moment:

I usually start by planning our pizza night first. I then plan our other meats around the meat I’ve chosen for the pizza.

Mondays are “Pasta Night.”

Tuesdays are “Pizza Night.”

Wednesdays are “Comfort Food Night.”

Thursdays are “Breakfast-for-Supper or Leftovers Buffet Night.”

Fridays are “Eat Out Night.” (Meal planning makes it much easier to find the funds to go out to eat on Fridays!)

Saturdays are a toss up. I usually just wait and see what everyone’s plans are for the evening!

Sundays - We generally eat a large, late lunch on Sundays. For supper, depending on how hungry we are, we eat a small snack or grab a milk shake after church.

Family InvolvementAlthough it is often times much easier, quicker and less messy to cook yourself, involve your family in the cooking of meals. Make it a fun family time. Be sure to require them to help clean-up! Everyone will learn some great life skills, and it has been our experience, that some of our best conversations take place as we cook together, set the table and tidy-up the kitchen. The kitchen truly can be the heart of the home!

Using CouponsCoupons can be a bane or a blessing, depending on how you use them. Here's a link to how I make coupons work for us: